


I'm Glad There Is You

by Skylar102



Series: Take These Broken Wings and Learn to Fly [4]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Anniversary, Blooming Romance, Falling In Love, Fluff, Happy Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Love Confessions, M/M, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Slow Dancing, Wing cuddles, Wings, the you won't stop smiling the entire time reading it kind of fluff, these boys are so in love its insane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:40:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24482923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skylar102/pseuds/Skylar102
Summary: It’s the one year anniversary of when Alec left his old life behind him
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Series: Take These Broken Wings and Learn to Fly [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1716808
Comments: 38
Kudos: 266
Collections: Favorite Malec Stories, Wingo Summer





	I'm Glad There Is You

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Wing Cuddles
> 
> Y'all when I tell you this is the fluffiest fic I will ever write you best believe this is some soft shit  
> I listened to so many 30s, 40s, and 50s love songs while writing this so you are in for some major fucking fluff
> 
> Thank you to [Em](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatnerdemilyj/works) for Beta'ing this and basically screaming at me in the comments on google docs
> 
> Song in fic and title: I'm Glad There is You by Julie London

It’s the one year anniversary of when Alec left his old life behind him. He doesn’t regret leaving. He misses his siblings, but the fact that they did not try to pay the ransom doesn’t make him miss them as much as he wants to. Izzy and Jace always made sure to include him in anything they could until someone saw them all together. The number of times Alec had to walk home alone because he was unwanted was too many to count.

He sits in his room, leaning against the headboard of his bed. He thinks back to his old life and realizes it doesn’t make him as sad as it first did. The memories from a year ago don’t send an ache through his heart. 

The life he has with Magnus, he wouldn’t trade it for the world. The amazing people he’s met in this city of Edom; Helen and Aline are now close friends of him and Magnus’. Friday’s just aren’t right if those two are not over for a night of food and drinks. His neighbors know his name and greet him with a smile when he leaves for work in the morning. 

The kid with the black wings he saw the first few weeks he and Magnus moved to the city asks him to play all the time. And also to brag about how he and Alec are twins because they share the same color wings. Max is his name, Alec comes to learn. 

The people of the market pull him left and right asking for his assistance. There’s never a dull day. People ask how he’s doing, offering him goods from their stalls without him having to ask or pay them. 

He finally feels wanted.

Alec pulls out the feather he’s kept hidden in his nightstand for 5 months now. He’s made sure to keep it in pristine condition but even after being careful, the vanes of the feather have become a bit frayed. The burgundy and gold still shine in the light of his room. He knows it’s weird that he’s kept a feather of Magnus’ after their first grooming together, but it was the first time someone trusted him with their wings and vice versa. His heart still swells at the trust Magnus has for him. 

He wants to cherish that first grooming for the rest of his life. Magnus and Alec have groomed each other’s wings plenty of times since that day, but Alec will never forget the intimacy of their first grooming for as long as he lives. They made it fun. The sounds that leave their mouths end with a laugh rather than awkward silence. Alec never feels like a bumbling fool because Magnus makes him feel comfortable. 

If only he had the courage to tell Magnus how he feels about the man.

A knock on the door has him hiding the feather under his pillow. He grabs the book on his nightstand to make it look like he’d been reading and not fawning over a feather.

“Come in!” he says, playing it cool before Magnus enters.

“Hey,” Magnus smiles at him, opening the door. “I was just wondering if you wanted to go out for dinner tonight.”

“Sure. What did you have in mind?”

“Well...” he trails off and plays with his ear cuff, a sign that Magnus is nervous. “You remember that restaurant that we went to the first month we came here?” 

“Yeah, the Italian place?” Alec nods, moving so that his legs and hanging off the bed. “Didn’t they close down for maintenance?”

“They did, but they just reopened last week and I thought… Well, I thought we could see if their pasta is still as good as it was all those months ago.”

“That sounds great, Magnus.”

“Excellent,” Magnus cheers, clapping his hands together before turning to leave. As he gets to the door frame he turns around. “Oh, make sure to dress nice. Apparently this place is now deemed as fine dining and doesn’t allow people in street clothes to enter anymore. Guess our street look made them reevaluate.”

Alec laughs as Magnus closes the door behind him. He grabs the feather and puts it back in his nightstand before standing up from the bed and making his way to the closet. Alec only has a few nice dress outfits from the times that his neighbors have invited them over for their monthly cocktail parties. It should worry him how many times they have the parties but after the first few, Alec has found that he enjoys the small gatherings.

Alec picks out his outfit, a black suit with matching black shoes. He lays out the suit on his bed, eyeing it to decide what tie he should wear when he remembers the gift that Aline had given him for his birthday. He goes to his dresser, pulls open the top drawer, and grabs the small box that has kept the tie in pristine condition until he found the courage to wear it. Opening the box he looks at the tie and smiles. 

Guess tonight is the night.

* * *

Alec makes his way downstairs to the living room. It had taken him longer than he had thought to get ready, but he wanted to make sure he looked his best. When he looked at himself in the mirror and the only color he had on him was the tie, he knew he made the right choice. He looks down at the burgundy tie and the gold swirls that twist around it and adjusts it for the twentieth time that night. He’s gelled up his hair so that it’s not the normal poofy mess he has to deal with.

He looks around and doesn’t see Magnus yet, which means the man is probably still getting ready. He shakes his head. He thought he was running late, but he forgot that Magnus wears makeup and won’t settle for anything less than perfect. 

Alec wanders around the living room, not wanting to sit so he doesn’t crinkle the suit. His mind drifts again to the past year and his time with Magnus. The house is now filled with memories of them. A small statue of a raven on the fireplace mantle that Magnus had brought home one day saying that it reminded him of Alec. Alec had been a sputtering fool only able to choke out a thanks before placing it in the spot it rests now.

There’s a guitar on the ground in the corner next to a record player that Alec had gifted Magnus after he witnessed Magnus help fix a street performer’s guitar on his lunch break. Watching Magnus strum a tune while making it sound right, Alec could tell that he could easily play a song. When he passed the music store one day and saw the acoustic guitar sitting in the window, he just knew he had to get it. He’s glad he stuck to his gut because the look on Magnus’ face when he saw the guitar sitting in the corner was everything to him.

His weekends were now filled with soft strums of guitar and a silky voice singing the sweetest of tunes. 

Alec turns his gaze to the wall and all the framed photos that hang. He steps up to the wall and takes in each photo. The one of him and Max showing off their wings in the park. Max had insisted on a hero pose and how could Alec say no to the little guy. He could hear Magnus laughing with Max’s parents, but he couldn’t feel embarrassed when Max was looking at him like he was the coolest person on the planet. 

The next photo was of Magnus and Aline both laying in chairs soaking up the sun’s rays in the back yard. Their wings spread out behind them, not caring that they were in the way of everyone else. What the photo doesn’t show is Helen sneaking up behind them with a bucket of water. Alec doesn’t think he’s laughed that hard before in his life, watching Aline chase her wife around the yard yelling profanities. He remembers looking over to where Magnus had sat up in the sun chair looking like a drowned rat and seeing the softest smile on his face instead of anger. 

Alec goes to the next photo. This one is probably his favorite of them all. It was later in the evening with Aline and Helen that they decided to have a bonfire in the back yard. They had invited their neighbors and Max and his parents over for smores. Aline had Max sit between her and Helen as a way to punish her wife for her earlier antics. There’s a visible pout on her face as she watches Aline help Max get his marshmallow on his stick. 

Their neighbors are chatting it up with Max’s parents. It was the first time they had met and they had hit it off immediately which meant they had added three more guests to their monthly get togethers. This also made Magnus sad because it meant less alcohol at the party, but Magnus got over it quickly once he saw how happy Max was to be hanging out with Alec more. 

In the two-person wicker chair sat him and Magnus. He hadn’t even realized they had practically snuggled against each other until their neighbor had given them the photo a few days later. He may have drunk too many sangrias that day, but Magnus had felt so nice next to him. His wing decided to make the decision for him and curl around Magnus, pulling the man into his side.

He remembers Magnus relaxing into his side, his own wings pulled behind him so that Alec’s could curl around him. The photo shows them looking at each other with smiles on their faces. He forgets what was said to cause them to look at each other with such tenderness.

That was the moment he fell in love with Magnus.

Alec is taken out of his trip down memory lane when he hears footsteps coming down the stairs. Turning to ask Magnus what took so long, his words die before they even reach his lips. 

Magnus was wearing a burgundy suit that matches his wings, gold seams around the edges of the blazer that shine. Golden cufflinks at the ends of the sleeves also glint in the light. His makeup flawless as always, eyeshadow the perfect match to the rest of his look. As Alec’s eyes look him over, they pause on the black tie around Magnus’ neck. When it hits the light just right, the colors of purple and blue shine through, just like his feathers. Alec’s throat dries up. 

He finally looks at Magnus and sees the man is also checking him out. When his eyes reach his tie, there’s a glow to them that wasn’t there before.

“Alexander,” Magnus whispers, finally looking at his face. “You look stunning.”

“As do you,” he whispers back, voice a bit more hoarse than he wishes.

They stare at each other for a moment more. Snapping out of it with an awkward cough, they make their way to the front door. Alec locks up the house behind them before meeting Magnus on the sidewalk. The two begin the slow journey to the restaurant on the other side of town. Walking side by side, Alec has to put his hands in his pockets to stop himself from grabbing Magnus’. His wings, on the other hand, have no problem with showing his true emotions and his left wing is slightly extended behind Magnus. If the other man notices, he’s kind enough to not mention it. 

“It’s a beautiful night out,” Magnus comments. 

“Yeah,” he says. _Not as beautiful as you,_ he thinks.

They walk in comfortable silence until they reach their destination. Nuovi Inizi is lit up in a soft glow. _New Beginnings,_ Alec muses, _how fitting_. The owners really outdid themselves with the remodel as they step inside the restaurant. The ceiling lights are dim as candles fill the room in a soft glow that truly sets the mood. Magnus approaches the hostess, saying they have a reservation as Alec takes in the place. 

“Follow me this way, Mr. Bane,” the hostess says. Magnus grabs his elbow and they follow the woman through the restaurant. They pass by a few couples that are also enjoying a night out, but they pass by them all and make their way through a set of french doors to the patio next to the ocean. Alec freezes at the sight causing Magnus to come to a halt as well. Magnus looks at him nervously and he understands why.

The patio has been cleared of all tables except for one in the middle. Fairy lights hang from the trees scattered around the area, illuminating the patio in a soft glow. 

“Magnus…”

“Is it too much?” Magnus asks anxiously.

“I don’t,” he stutters finally looking at the man. “What is all of this?”

Magnus gets even more nervous if possible. He rubs his hands together, biting his lip before speaking.

“It’s the one year anniversary from when you decided to join me,” he says. “I wanted to celebrate the moment in a special way because it means a lot to me that you chose to come with me.” Magnus’ wings get smaller behind him and Alec realizes that whatever his face is doing is scaring Magnus. “We can go somewhere else if it’s too much-”

“No,” Alec blurts out. “It’s- You did all of this,” he gestures at the table, “for me?”

“Of course I did, Alexander,” Magnus admits, his wings losing their tension. “There’s no one else in the world who deserves this more than you.”

If Alec wasn’t sure he was in love with Magnus, he is now. He closes the small space between then and grabs Magnus’ hands, holding tight.

“Thank you,” he whispers. “It’s beautiful.”

Whatever tension Magnus had in his body leaves and he pulls Alec towards the setup. The hostess left their menus on the table before disappearing back inside. Alec pulls out Magnus’ chair before sitting down in his own. He grabs the menu and everything is new. None of the foods they had last time are on the menu. 

“Wow,” Alec laughs, peering over his menu. “It’s like they completely threw out the old place.”

“That is for sure,” Magnus agrees with a laugh of his own. “You think they would at least keep the ravioli I had last time, don’t think I ever had it that good before in my life.”

The waitress comes back with a bottle of red wine and takes their orders. They fill the night with talk of work and life. Just like any night before this, words fall easily from their lips. Their laughter echoes on the empty patio and they have to stop themselves from getting too loud lest they annoy the patrons inside. When their dinner arrives, they’ve almost finished the whole bottle of wine and Alec feels warm inside. He’s pretty sure it’s mostly the wine but with Magnus sitting across from him, he can’t tell. Magnus always had a way of making him feel warm inside by just being in his presence. 

Small talk continues during dinner and after. Alec’s pretty sure they’ve stayed past their welcome but their waitress has not said anything so Alec isn’t going to either. Alec sits back and closes his eyes. He lets the sound of the ocean wash over him and that’s when he hears it; music drifting from inside the restaurant and reaching the patio.

Decision made, Alec sits up from his chair and holds out his hand.

“Care to dance, Mr. Bane?” Magnus stares at the hand and back up at him. Alec raises an eyebrow. So he may be feeling a bit more confident due to the wine, sue him. It’s not like he’d have this courage if he was sober. 

“Lead the way, Mr. Lightwood.” Magnus grabs his hand and Alec leads him to an open space. 

He holds Magnus’s right hand in his left and wraps his other around Magnus’ waist. Magnus’ other hand wraps around his neck and brushes at the hairs on the back of it.

_In this world of ordinary people_

_Extraordinary people_

_I'm glad there is you_

They sway back and forth, barely moving as they stare into each other’s eye. Alec has never been happier for Helen, that she taught him how to dance one drunken night.

_In this world of overrated pleasures_

_And underrated treasures_

_I'm glad there is you_

Alec leans his head forward to rest against Magnus’ and it feels like he’s truly found his place in the world. 

_I live to love, I love to live_

_With you beside me_

_This role so new I'll muddle through_

_With you to guide me_

Alec doesn’t know what he would do without Magnus. What he would be. Who he would be. He shivers just thinking about it. Magnus must feel the shiver because the grip tightens before the fingers start stroking the back of his neck.

_In this world where many many play at love_

_But hardly any stay in love_

_I'm glad there is you_

_More than ever_

_I'm glad there is you_

“I love you,” Alec whispers in the small space between them. Magnus’s eyes shimmer in the soft glow of lights at the confession, a soft smile on his face. He looks even more beautiful than he has all night. 

“I love you, too,” Magnus whispers back. They stare at each other for a moment before he closes the space between them. 

The kiss is everything he imagined it to be. It’s not rushed or hurried. It’s gentle and soft, like they’re something fragile that needs to be handled with care. He tightens the hand he has on Magnus’ waist and feels the hand on the back of his neck drift into his hair. It never becomes heated even if he wants nothing more. Right now is not about that. It’s about the man in his arms and the fact that he loves him back.

He pulls back, laughing as Magnus follows his lips. He gives a small peck and leans his head next to Magnus’. Magnus tucks his face into the crook of his neck. Alec hums the lyrics of the song as they sway back and forth on the patio. The arm Magnus has around his neck drops to his shoulders and holds on tight. Once again his wings have a mind of their own and curl around Magnus’ wings. Their own little cocoon, tucked away from the rest of the world. He knows the wait staff will come to kick them out eventually, but right now? 

Right now, Alec wants nothing more than to dance with the man he loves.

**Author's Note:**

> Come talk to me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Skylar10211)
> 
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> 
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